§ 61. Mrs. Joyce Butlerasked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if he will ban the use of mercury as a seed dressing now that an effective substitute has been approved under the Pesticides Safety Precautions Scheme.
§ Mr. PriorIt would certainly be premature to take any view on this while the non-mercurial alternative is undergoing its present acceptance trials under the Department's voluntary Agricultural Chemicals Approval Scheme. In the meantime I am glad of this opportunity to reassure the honourable Member that it is the practice of our Advisory Committee on Pesticides and Other Toxic 267W Chemicals to review existing clearances under the Pesticides Safety Precautions Scheme in the light of any relevant developments; and I look to this Committee for advice on whether the clearance for any particular chemical should be continued, modified or withdrawn.